House of fun: Ray Peacock, Martin Mor and Andrew Ryan
Thursday 24th November
The Library Pub
4/5
Who knew that such a charming gem of a venue was hiding above the Library pub? Walking up the traditional and historic tiled staircase to the first floor, romantic fairy lights and a relaxed atmosphere invite you into the comfortable and easy-going space. Either for students wanting to do something a bit different (and affordable), a first date or even pre-drinks, the House of Fun Comedy Night proves to be a very enjoyable evening.
The audience were ‘warmed up’ by the Irish Andrew Ryan who also introduced each act. However, his ‘chat’ with the audience got a little tedious after just a few too many “where are you from? What course do you study?” type questions, with petty criticism after each answer. Ryan certainly made the audience look forward to the next act.
Ray Peacock (his stage name, thank goodness) was certainly likeable and engaged well with the audience, despite his messy structure. At times he seemed a little awkward with the cues on his hand clearly going unused, but the whole shambles had great comic value. Ray’s horrific stories of encounters in public toilets left you wincing, yet laughing uncontrollably.
Although anticipating the face of Steve Shanyaski, the audience were left clueless as to why we were suddenly introduced to Martin Mor. An explanation to the change of act would have been appreciated. However, we were not left disappointed as Mor made the night.
Martin’s appearance played a huge part in his set. A fat, hairy Scotsman picking out a red head in the audience and talking about how he loves a “little ginger muff” was cringe-worthy yet brilliant. His distasteful and controversial humour could be likened to that of Frankie Boyle. From the beginning, Martin established that he was not one to follow the rules. Within the first two minutes he was straddled over a poor boy in the audience, rubbing his hairy belly in his face whilst doing the most disturbing ‘sexy dance’ you could imagine. The whole audience was howling with laughter and the atmosphere buzzed in a hysterical nervousness as Mor walked round with his microphone, picking on individuals and asking intense questions about their sex life. An uncomfortable couple on their first date must have left regretting their choice to sit in the front row as they served as victim to much of Mor’s scrutiny. Although little structure in his set and even ending on awful ‘poo jokes’, Mor’s spontaneity felt personal and showed that he knew how to handle an easy-to-please student-based audience.
House of Fun comedy nights definitely exceed expectations and will not fail to provide much amusement for what would otherwise be a standard Thursday night. Highly recommended!
